Chapter Text
Karl had good clothes, sure he did. He made them himself, so they had to be good.
It's just, he was the only one who thought they were that good. Karl bartered with the women in town squares to get the boldest fabrics with the brightest patterns, and while he loved them with all his heart, most people he came across complained about the eyesore that was his fashion sense.
He frowned down at his bed, where he'd laid out his best clothes.
His shirt was a purple silk, something he was insanely proud to own - he'd spent a pretty penny on it, and even though he'd had to sleep under a bridge for the next month while he'd sewn it with a dull needle and old thread, he had no regret in buying it. His trousers were a maroon corduroy, a similar enough colour to the shirt that no-one complained when he wore them together. His waistcoat was an copen blue wool, and his jacket was tweed, a mixture of green and pink and blue.
Surely this would be good enough for first class dining, he reasoned as he started to pull the shirt on. The villages he travelled around didn't exactly have the upper class making conversation with the commoners, so it wasn't like he knew what they wore to dinner. For all he knew, he could turn up to the women wearing the suits and the men wearing the skirts.
As he fastened the last few buttons of his jacket, he was startled by a knocking on the door. It couldn't be any of his roommates, because they would just walk in, and it couldn't be the mother and the child he'd met yesterday, because he'd be able to hear them talking from the other side of the door if it were.
Cautiously pulling his door open, he came face to face with a valet, looking all too out of place in the hall with its wooden planks for floors and whitewashed walls.
"Yes?" Karl asked, wondering if the man had gotten lost.
"Your presence has been requested by Philza Minecraft, sir."
'Sir'? "Are you sure you've got the right cabin?" Karl floundered.
"Quite, sir."
Karl, with no response readily available at the tip of his tongue - which felt weird - stepped out of his room and began to follow the valet. As they went, Karl wracked his brain for any reason that Philza Minecraft would want to speak with him. Admittedly, he didn't know much about the man, just bits and pieces from Karl's reading about the American Civil War and the company the Minecraft's ran. The man and his family couldn't be more rich if they married into the monarchy, there was no reason that he should even know who Karl was.
The walk to the stateroom was in silence. Karl was too lost in his mind, and the valet didn't want to talk to him, so by the time they made it to the room, reaching towards the midship's fore of C Deck, it was a respite that Philza answered the knock on his door.
"Thank you, Henry," The skin around his eyes crinkled as he smiled, "You're dismissed."
The valet bowed before turning on his heel and walking down the tiled hall. Karl didn't watch him go, not taking his eyes off Philza.
Meaning, he saw the exact moment that the man took at good look at him and the smile dropped.
"What are you wearing?"
"Um," Karl looked down, feeling a little self conscious, "My best clothes, sir."
Philza laughed, something incredulous but not mocking, before guiding Karl into the stateroom. It was lavish, with polished mahogany walls, the wood paneling covering the white painted plating of the ship that Karl was getting used to staring at in his room, and a deep green carpet to compliment the deep wine red covers on the furniture in the room.
Philza stopped in front of the room's fireplace, where a mirror hung above the mantle. His eyes barely reached past it's ornate gilded frame, and although Karl could see his own face's reflection easily, he felt very small as Philza looked him up and down.
"Do you even know what you're about to walk into?" He asked as Karl tried to shy away from his stare.
Karl laughed, although it wasn't the same one that had slipped out when he had been with Quackity earlier, "Not really, no, sir."
Philza tutted and Karl did his best to not seem too fazed by it before the man turned to walk towards a wardrobe. Running a hand through his hair, Karl looked back at his reflection. Had he always had that scratch below his chin?
"I can smell you nerves from here, you know," A new voice said as a door opened, and Karl jumped so harshly he knocked his elbow on the mantelpiece. The new voice chuckled while he rubbed his wound and looked around.
A man stood at the door that had just been opened, presumably to the stateroom's en suite, leaning against the door frame. He was adorned in the same three piece as Philza, but wore no tie opposed to the older man's white one. His hair was a strawberry blond, although his beard was a dark brown, and he had the look of someone entertaining the slowest talker in the world.
"What are you wearing?"
Karl fought off a frown at the repeated question, but Philza just laughed, "I said exactly the same thing Techno!"
"What's wrong with my clothes?" Karl asked before remembering that he was in the presence of some of the richest passengers of the ship and biting his tongue.
Techno side eyed Karl but Philza, adversely, took it in stride as he turned back towards Karl with a suit draped over his arm, black and white just like his and Techno's. He wore a tolerant grin, waving his hand in Karl's direction.
"Well, they're a little... zany aren't they?" Karl looked down at himself. He knew they were, of course, that's why he liked them, "They make you stand out a little too much."
"You'll want to blend in tonight, if you want to survive." Techno said ominously and Karl gulped, feeling pinned into place by his stare, "All the socialites know each other on this ship already. You're a day late. You're a whole life late, really."
"Mate." Techno dropped Karl's gaze at Philza's warning tone, "Stop it."
There was an awkward silence for a moment before Techno pushed off the door frame, not giving Karl another glance before walking towards the door to the corridor.
"Those aren't my clothes are they?"
"Karl wouldn't fit in your clothes. They're Wilbur's."
"Good," And with that the door shut, leaving Philza and Karl alone again.
Philza crossed the space, handing the clothes over to Karl. He knew that he should probably go get changed, but he remained stood in front of the fire place as he stared at the starched collar of the dress shirt in his arms.
He'd snuck onto boat deck because there was nothing stopping him, other than a few signs. He'd seen Quackity and rushed to help him because he couldn't in his right mind watch someone jump to their death. He'd agreed to dinner because Quackity seemed to genuinely want to thank him.
He hadn't done any of it to deal with first class passengers that thought they were inherently better than him for their stuck up rules on etiquette and whatever they had to say about his fashion.
Philza noticed his lack of movement and pressed a hand to Karl's arm. Karl noticed his eyes were crystal blue.
"Don't mind what Techno says, mate," He said gently, and only in that moment did Karl pick up on the Phil's accent. It was northern - it was common.
"You..."
"I was about your age when I traveled to America for the first time," Philza laid a hand over Karl's, "You won't feel in place. You just need to pretend that you do. Can you do that?"
Karl looked back to the door Techno had just walked out of, resolve hardening in his chest. Phil smiled.
"Ignore what everyone else says. Go out there and own the floor you walk on." Karl nodded and Phil pat his arm and chuckled, "I mean, just look at Quackity. You'll be fine."
Philza left the room before Karl finished changing, leaving him with the gorgeous room to himself. If Karl were a worse man, he'd use the time to nick what he could, and although the thought did cross his mind for a moment as he looked around the extravagant and empty room, he shook it away immediately. He typically only stole what he needed, and well, there wasn't anything in this room he would ever have a use for, everything so pretentious and perfect. Besides, if it wasn't something he could sweet talk himself into having, it probably wasn't worth it.
And the culprit would pretty clearly be him if anything did go missing, and Karl would prefer to not to be handcuffed to a pole in the boiler rooms of the ship, or whatever criminals were faced with here.
The mirror sat directly opposite the bed, and Karl felt no guilt jumping up onto the satin quilt to check himself out. He wasn't wearing his shoes, so the Minecraft's shouldn't be too mad, if ever they found out.
Karl faltered as he saw himself. He rarely wore black and white, for the simple fact that it didn't look good on him. He'd be lying now if he said he looked bad, with the suit fitting him exceptionally - for although Karl made his own clothes, they couldn't get the title of 'tailor made' - but he realised something about the borrowed clothes. There was something incredibly lacking about them.
They lacked any personality. The suit was a carbon copy of Philza and Techno's. They made Karl look plain.
Still, Karl supposed, he only had to wear them for tonight. Gods, if Ranboo saw him like this, he probably wouldn't recognise Karl.
He laughed at the thought as he hopped off the bed to find his socks. Unlike the suit, Philza hadn't given him a different pair, and Karl grinned at the odd socks he'd left tucked in his scuffed shoes.
A little personality never killed anyone.
He arrived at the grand staircase ten minutes before seven, and although he felt wildly out of place, nobody bat an eyelid at the young gentleman stood next to the magnificent banister. There was no sign of Quackity or Sapnap yet; although Karl didn't think he'd be able to recognise Sapnap immediately after only spending a few seconds with him in the dark yesterday. The minutes ticked by slowly. Karl eventually resolved to just hold his hands behind his back to refrain from messing with them while he waited.
Karl didn't think he would have been called to Philza's room without the beck of either Sapnap or Quackity though, so he didn't feel nervous about the whole thing being a prank, because honestly, who invites a third class passenger to first class dinner on the world's most luxurious liner?
The clock struck seven. The two of them hadn't arrived. Karl began to get lost in his head.
He definitely wasn't late, like Quackity had instructed him not to be. The clock in the middle of the staircase confirmed so, and Karl had pretty good time keeping anyway.
...What if it was a prank, though? Karl really hadn't done much to deserve thanking, he'd actually put Quackity closer to death than intended. He wasn't really all that useful in helping the other man back onto the ship either, because Sapnap had been so much stronger and all Karl had done was run his mouth then run off because he didn't want to spend the rest of the voyage handcuffed to a pole in the boiler room.
What if Philza was in on the prank, and had lent the suit just to mess with Karl's head? Yeah, Karl could see that happening. Gods, they were probably all laughing at him right now. He was so--
"Karl! You made it!"
Quackity stood before him, a broad - a genuine - smile on his face. Another man, with short black hair, stood behind him with the same smile. Sapnap, it clicked in Karl's brain after a second.
"I don't think I could of refused, you were very insistent. Practically leaped on me."
Karl watched in cautious amusement as Quackity sputtered for a second before regaining composure, "I did not."
Karl turned his attention to Sapnap, who was still watching him, "He did."
"Sapnap, I didn't. I asked him like a gentleman!"
"He jumped over the barrier and ran at me."
"You didn't even notice I was there."
Sapnap laughed heartily, "You're not denying it though."
Quackity rolled his eyes, scoffing, but Karl could tell he wasn't genuinely annoyed. He enjoyed the dramatics for a moment before Sapnap cleared his throat.
"I don't believe we've formally met yet," He said, offering a hand out.
"Ah, of course," Karl bowed, kissing the hand's knuckles, "I'm Karl, sir."
Sapnap's face, which had been the most passive of the three so far, burst into flames. From his hairline to where his neck met the collar of his shirt, a rosy blush tainted the skin, and Sapnap looked away as soon as Karl met his eyes.
"Call me Sapnap, please."
Oh. Karl thought, delighted. He could work with this.
"You don't typically kiss the men's hands," Quackity hummed lowly as Karl rose, and Karl got a feeling that if he'd already started breaking a few social taboos tonight, there was no reason to stop now.
"Well, where's the fun in that?" He giggled, "Do you want me to kiss your hand too?"
Quackity didn't have any outward reaction like Sapnap had, but did stick his hand out wordlessly. With great amusement Karl took it, leaning down to acquaint lips to knuckles. He could definitely work with this.
"We should get going," Quackity said as Karl straightened again, but Karl noticed the way his eyes avoided Karl's, like Sapnap's had.
"Right. I'm starving!"
Karl was a likeable guy. He was chatty, and if people entertained him, he'd talk their ear off with tall tales and wild stories that usually got him into their good books. And he knew, obviously, that he was good looking, but rarely was he good enough to fascinate the upper class.
Following behind Sapnap and Quackity, Karl looked at the tiled floor, so unlike the wood in the lower decks. The chandeliers' light above glinted on the flooring, but didn't quite reach Karl's shoes, matte brown as they were. Navy blue and orange socks peaked out from underneath his trousers.
He just needed to survive tonight, he repeated in his head. He could fake it until then.
The air in the saloon was warmer than he'd expected. People smiled politely to one another, trading compliments while they awaited their food. It was much more held together than anything Karl had ever experienced.
Sapnap guided them towards a circular table where a group of people were already sat, Philza and Techno included. He sat next to a man with the same jet black hair as Sapnap's, and Quackity sat next to a woman with fiery red hair, leaving Karl to sit between them. He smiled at Philza, bowing his head in a silent thank you, one Philza returned with a light smile.
They'd arrived just in time, apparently, as starters were passed around the table as soon as they were sat. It was a soup, although it took Karl a minute - and Quackity's subtle pointing - for him to work out which spoon to pick up and begin to eat.
"Sapnap, are you going to introduce us to your new friends?" The man next to Sapnap asked.
"Introductions!" Sapnap repeated emphatically, "Everyone, this is Karl and Quackity," Karl raised his hand in a wave as he shuffled in his seat, which didn't wobble or creak as he moved. Quackity nodded in greeting beside him. Sapnap began to point around the circle, starting with the man to his left, "Karl and Quackity, this is Bad Halo, Philza Minecraft, Technoblade Minecraft, Wilbur Soot, little Fundy Soot, and Sally Soot."
"It's a pleasure to meet you both," Sally hummed before her attention was turned back to her baby, babbling to himself.
"The pleasure is ours, I assure you," Karl returned to the table.
Wilbur smiled genially, "Of course! We've heard from Sapnap your bravery last night, we wouldn't want our dear Quackity to have met an all too soon watery grave. I'd miss him greatly."
"Do you know each other?" Sapnap asked.
Quackity stayed suspiciously silent, sipping his soup and avoiding eye contact. Wilbur though, took the first chance he could to answer.
"Quackity and I go way back! Even before he--"
"Wilbur." Quackity's spoon was set down into his bowl slowly, but Karl could see the minute shake to his hands.
"What? I was just going to say before you got on the Titanic," Wilbur waved him off dismissively, although there was something about his tone that implied he wasn't done, "And why were you on the third class promenade at that time of night? Were you m--"
"The stern of a ship is breathtaking, especially at night," Karl interrupted, "The wind in your hair, the stars spread out above, the sky connecting with the sea as if you yourself have entered the night and landed on the moon, alone. It's quiet, far from the midship where there are people mingling below your feet, no, you are completely alone, just the sea below you. It's an adventure, something that takes commendable bravery, although I'm not sure you wo- Ah, thank you."
The waiters had arrived with the main course, placing them in front of the passengers on the table. Karl's mouth watered at the medium rare steak before him, adorned with decorative onions and potatoes. When he looked back up, the table was staring at him.
"What?"
Sapnap was obviously trying to hide his mirth, while Quackity stared at Karl with his jaw clenched as if he were desperately attempting to not copy the agape expression of everyone else on the table.
Bad looked away first, turning towards Philza with a half strained look, "You were telling us about Technoblade's Olympic trials?"
"Oh, yes," Philza nodded, beginning a tale of how Athens had been in the winter, and the get together he had managed to rope himself into with the fencing judges that had gotten a little out of hand with a little too much wine.
The evening dragged on slowly, with Sally leaving first with Fundy in her arms, claiming an early night for the baby. Before Bad and Philza had the chance to leave and drift to the smoke room, leaving Technoblade and Wilbur at the table, Sapnap stood, offering his arms to both Karl and Quackity.
"Would you two do me the honour of taking a walk before retiring to bed?"
"I couldn't say no to that," Karl laughed, taking his arm.
Quackity didn't say anything, keeping his eyes on Sapnap as he stood and took the other arm. Karl could feel the poorly-hidden stares from the rest of the table, but ignored them as he practically dragged Sapnap and Quackity out of the room.
It was only once the door swung shut behind the three of them that Karl was able to realise the warm atmosphere he'd felt entering the room had become stifling throughout the meal, and the deep breath he took in the cool air was as if he were breathing for the first time after being choked.
Once they were far enough away from the saloon for the stream of first class passengers to turn to a drip, Quackity slumped against a wall, his forehead pressed to the cold metal, "Fucking hell," He muttered.
"You're telling me," Karl groaned, doubling over with his hands on his knees, "I never want to wear a stuck up suit or be around so many stuck up people again."
Sapnap rubbed his neck awkwardly, glancing between the two of them, "I'm sorry. I didn't realise..."
He didn't say they are never like that, or I didn't know they'd act like that, and Karl saw how Quackity grimaced as he looked in Sapnap's direction. The evening needed brightening and they all knew it.
"It's okay, it's the thought that counts, right?" Karl sprung right back up again, holding his hands out in the direction of both men, "Now, I believe you offered us a mosey around the ship before bed?"
Sapnap brightened at the mention, grabbing Karl's hand a split second before Quackity silently took his offer as well. Karl beamed, pulling them forward.
They ended up on the first class promenade, empty now with most passengers still in the dining saloon or smoking. Quackity broke away from Karl's hold first, ambling towards the barrier overlooking the sea, simply staring out.
Still holding Sapnap's hand, Karl followed behind, situating himself to Quackity's left as he looked out.
"You were right," Quackity said quietly.
"Hm?"
"The sky does connect to the sea in the dark," Quackity continued, "I can't tell where the sky ends and the sea starts."
"Oh, yeah," Karl tilted his head to the side, staring at the horizon. If he squinted hard enough, he could see the faint black line, but that wasn't important, "I guess I've just been on enough ships to notice."
"All of the second class deck is covered in lifeboats, you don't pay for the ocean view."
"Bah," Sapnap scoffed, "They're pointless too. Who puts lifeboats on an unsinkable ship?"
"'Designed to be unsinkable'," Karl corrected, but the other two just blinked at him, "By all accounts, the ship could still sink. The Titanic is designed to stay afloat through some bad collisions, but it's always nice to have the lifeboats, just in case of a proper emergency. Like, Captain Smith is a well traversed man- he would make sure that lifeboats are only used in dire situations."
"Ah, don't say it like that," Quackity grumbled, "You're making it sound like a bad omen."
"It'll be fine," Sapnap stressed, leaning over the barrier to get a better look at Quackity, "'Designed to be unsinkable' sounds like a pretty decent bet to me."
Quackity rolled his eyes, a smile on his face, then yawned, stretching and shivering as a gust of wind passed around him. Karl took his hand again, and because Quackity didn't complain, began pulling him back towards the exit.
"I think it's bedtime for the tired passenger," He quipped as they made it inside, "Don't worry sir, I shall escort you back to your room."
Quackity snorted, "Don't say it like that."
"I shall confabulate how I like, good man!"
"Shut up!"
Sapnap snickered, running a hand down his face as he watched the two.
The walk to Quackity's room was full of chatter between the three, and once they made it to D-56 another ten minutes was spent outside before Quackity yawned again and Karl pushed him inside, demanding he got a good night's sleep. Quackity only rolled his eyes in response, but bid the two of them goodnight and shut the door, leaving an empty hallway to Sapnap and Karl, hand in hand.
"Could I offer to walk the good gentlemen back to his room as well?" Sapnap asked, swinging their conjoined hands together.
"'The good gentleman'," Karl parroted back, but smiled softly as he began to walk towards the second class staircase, "Why, so you can get my room address? You need not be so sneaky, you poor spy, I'd give it to you in a heartbeat. Although, I do warn you that there are three other men sharing the room with me."
Sapnap barked a laugh, "You're in the bow of the ship? If I remember correctly, the space is for single men."
"Well, there are a few families on the lower decks, but generally, yep!" Karl snickered, sticking his face close to Sapnap's profile, "But why do you know that? Were you researching beforehand to find a third class man to adore for the voyage?"
"A good magician never reveals his secrets," Sapnap joked as they descended the stairs. Their footfalls echoed on the white walls.
Karl pushed the door open onto E deck, a long corridor ahead of him. He took a deep breath, gladly accepting the tang of salt in the air.
"Ah, Scotland Road," He exhaled, starting down the passageway.
"This corridor is a road?"
"Not really," Karl giggled, "It's named after a Liverpudlian street. Come on, we've got to be quiet now. A lot of the crews room's are down this stretch, I wouldn't want to disturb them."
"Wow, so generous," Karl wasn't looking at Sapnap, but he was pretty sure he'd rolled his eyes.
"Excuse you, I am lovely."
"You sure are."
Karl glanced at Sapnap, finding him staring. Oh, Sapnap was already down bad. And Karl hadn't even done anything! Maybe Sapnap had been looking for a third class man to woo on his way to New York. And that worked out, because Karl had been looking for anyone, really, to woo on the world's largest ocean liner.
Sapnap seemed to realise he'd been caught staring and looked ahead, clearing his throat. Karl though, had different plans, tugging him closer and setting his head on Sapnap's shoulder. They walked the rest of the way in silence.
In front of Karl's cabin door, the two came face to face. Sapnap's hand had become sweaty in Karl's palm, but he didn't care.
"I'll see you tomorrow," He whispered, and if Sapnap asked, Karl would have said it was because his roommates were sleeping just behind him, but it had the intended effect. Sapnap looked down at their still joined hands.
"How many times have you done this before?"
Karl's lips tugged up in a smirk, eyes flashing as he murmured, "Depends what you mean by 'this'..."
Sapnap, to Karl's surprise, was the one who pushed up to peck his lips. It lasted less than a second, and Karl didn't even have time to close his eyes and enjoy it before Sapnap pulled away, cheeks a flattering red.
He swung the conjoined hands again, eyebrows pinched in a way that could only look troubled, and for a moment, Karl thought there was something wrong. Before he could ask though, Sapnap was talking again.
"I like Quackity too."
Oh.
"Oh!" Karl blinked, before a grin broke onto his face, "I like him too!"
Sapnap looked unsure still, his eyes flicking between Karl's, trying to read him.
"We can find him tomorrow, if you want." Karl continued.
"I'd like that..."
"I like you," Karl stole another kiss, relishing in the surprised look on Sapnap's face after he comes back up, "And I like Quackity." Another kiss, "We'll sort it out all out tomorrow."
"Tomorrow," Sapnap agreed, taking Karl's face in his hand and guiding him down for a final, longer kiss, one that both were prepared for this time.
"Tomorrow," Karl breathed.
Sapnap eventually left, allowing Karl to slip into his room and get ready for bed as quick as possible. Gods, tomorrow couldn't come fast enough.